New Tanks Site Ownership Rule in Missouri

Starting December 31, 2017, a new tanks site ownership rule will go into effect in Missouri, affecting approximately 300 landowners across the state. This law, or statute, is related to the cleanup of former petroleum storage tank properties (typically old gas stations).

New Tanks Site Ownership Rule

History of the Law

First, for a little background on this new tanks site ownership rule – historically, for former petroleum tank sites where the tanks were taken out of use by December 31, 1997, the party responsible for cleaning up any contamination from those tanks had been the person(s) who owned or operated the tanks when the spill or leak occurred. However, many times these previous owners had perhaps gone bankrupt, dissolved their companies, or even passed away, leaving many historical tank sites with potential soil and groundwater contamination. This resulted in a contaminated property for which the State had no one to hold responsible or handle cleanup. The State has limited funds in their budget for helping with cleanup at former tank sites, but with an ever increasing number of contaminated sites being found during property transactions, there wasn’t enough to go around.

A funding mechanism for cleanup finally arrived in the 1990s. As enacted by Missouri Senate Bill 708 and House Bill 251, tanks that were no longer in use and had been registered with the State of Missouri’s Department of Natural Resources (MoDNR) by December 31, 1997 could be eligible for participation in the Petroleum Storage Tank Insurance Fund (PSTIF). The PSTIF provides reimbursement of up to $1 million of costs related to the investigation and cleanup of petroleum contamination resulting from use of these historical tanks, after the claimant has paid a $10,000 deductible.

Owners of a property who met the requirements of either Senate Bill 708 or House Bill 251 could file a claim with the PSTIF, even if they were not the “responsible party” who owned or operated the tanks. Further, since they were not considered the responsible party, the MoDNR, which oversees the cleanup of petroleum tank sites, could not legally force current property owners to clean up known contamination related to those former tanks. Unless the contamination posed immediate risk to human health or the environment, all of the active cleanups ongoing at these sites have been 100% voluntary up to this point, with the PSTIF picking up the lion’s share of the tab. Depending on the extent of contamination found, a typical investigation and cleanup of one of these properties ranges from $30,000 to $250,000.

2017 Update

While the actions taken by these property owners in the past have been voluntary, new language, which has been inserted into the state law, notes, “After December 31, 2017, the current legal owner of the site shall be the responsible party for corrective action” that may be required to address a release of petroleum from former storage tanks located on the property (RSMo, 319.131.9(3) and 319.131.10(2)). This new tanks site ownership rule applies to sites that had either underground storage tanks (USTs) or above ground storage tanks (ASTs), and it only applies to sites that are eligible for PSTIF benefits (those that meet the criteria of either House Bill 251 or Senate Bill 708, as noted above).

At some of these sites, the current property owner is already voluntarily allowing cleanup; at others, the property may have changed hands but a previous owner is handling the cleanup. At these sites, the rule change will have little to no effect so long as those parties continue to move forward with the cleanup process. However, at about 90–100 sites across the state, no cleanup is currently ongoing, despite having known soil or groundwater contamination.

The PSTIF recently mailed out letters to all affected landowners, as well as parties who are currently involved with active, ongoing cleanup. Property owners who have received one of these letters are encouraged to contact the PSTIF to provide feedback on their future plans, which will be provided to the MoDNR at the end of the year. Beginning January 1, 2018, MoDNR will have new authority to require action for the 90–100 stalled cleanups, and it will be up to the state to decide when and how to approach that task.

How to Move Forward

If you are one of the affected property owners and would like to move forward with pursuing investigation and cleanup at your property, Environmental Works, Inc., (EWI) can assist you in applying for a remedial claim with the PSTIF and navigating the stringent regulatory requirements of the MoDNR. Also, if you are considering purchasing a former tank site, knowing about the new tanks site ownership rule may be beneficial to you and your property transaction.

EWI has cleaned up hundreds of petroleum tank sites throughout Missouri since the inception of the PSTIF in the 1990s. EWI has offices in Kansas City, Springfield, and St. Louis with over 40 qualified scientists and geologists. Our staff, which has served on the MoDNR’s Missouri Risk-Based Corrective Action (MRBCA) Stakeholder’s Group and the Advisory Committee to the PSTIF Board of Trustees, has a combined experience of more than 100 years specifically on MRBCA/tank cleanup sites. In addition to our consulting services, EWI is unique because of our in-house resources for field services, which include 60 trained field technicians and equipment operators, as well as heavy equipment for spill response, excavations, and tank removals, and a full range of drilling services. EWI’s tank clients include everyone from private individuals with one tank to large regional and national petroleum marketers.